'Modern Family' star Sarah Hyland fires back at trolls after her cousin is killed by alleged drunk driver

'Modern Family' star Sarah Hyland fires back at trolls after her cousin is killed by alleged drunk driver

'Modern Family' star Sarah Hyland fires back at trolls after her cousin is killed by alleged drunk driver

Sarah Hyland says she’s “st aying offline for a while” after posting about her cousin’s death on Instagram. (Photos: Getty Images, GoFundMe)

Sarah Hyland is firing back at critics in wake of the death of her 14-year-old cousin, who was killed in an alleged drunk-driving accident over the weekend.

The Modern Family actress took to her Instagram Stories on Sunday to reveal that Trevor Canaday was involved in a hit-and-run accident in Omaha, Neb., on Saturday, along with his dad, Hyland’s uncle Clifford Canaday, who was behind the wheel.

“This is my 14 year old cousin Trevor. Yesterday, he was killed by a drunk driver. My Uncle is still in the hospital in need of more surgeries,” Hyland wrote with a link to a GoFundMe page to support Trevor’s funeral expenses.

The page was set up by Trevor’s sister Tessa Canaday, whose father, Bryan (Hyland’s uncle), remains in the hospital “physically recovering” from the crash.

Hyland’s co-stars Ariel Winter and Nolan Gould, as well as her boyfriend, Wells Adams, took to their own social media pages to encourage followers to donate what they can to help the Canaday family.

Since news of the death broke, Hyland has also hit back at those who had “negative thoughts” about the resulting fundraising campaign, to which the star donated $1,000 (£782), the Daily Mail reported.

“I’d like to ask those who have negative thoughts or opinions about the tragedy that happened to my family, to keep them to themselves,” Hyland, 28, tweeted and also shared on Instagram.

Modern Family star Sarah Hyland hits out at trolls after the death of her cousin. (Photo: via Instagram)

“You don’t know all the details,” she continued. “And how dare you attack when a beautiful life has been lost.”

I’d like to ask those who have negative thoughts or opinions about the tragedy that happened to my family, to keep them to themselves. You don’t know all the details. And how dare you attack when a beautiful life has been lost.

You guys finally did it. Your horrible negative ignorant words have broken me. Happy? Staying offline for a while. I have a special announcement and video releasing on Wednesday I believe. So. There’s that. ✌🏼

In her Instagram Stories, Hyland named the man allegedly responsible for the crash and said he tried to flee the scene of the accident.

Hyland said the 36-year-old has had two prior DUIs, which local Omaha news outlet KMTV also reported according to court records. KMTV also reports that the driver ran a red light before hitting Canaday’s car. He was later arrested on suspicion of allegedly driving while intoxicated.